Kung Hei Faat Choi!
by Kakyoku no Kaze
Summary: England gains guardianship over Hong Kong after the first Opium War, but finds that life with the boy isn't as he expected.  When New Years arrives and he sees that not even the holidays cheers him up, he heads over to Asia for some help.


Hong Kong was usually a very cheerful little boy. Everyday he would fish with his people, smiling despite how hard the work could be for someone so small. This is why his sudden shift in behavior after his transfer of guardians as a result of the first Opium War shocked England. Granted he did not expect Hong Kong to simply welcome his culture and (horrible) food after moving in to his house, but he had not anticipated the positively abysmal depressive slump the small colony was in everyday.

"Hong Kong, would you like some tea and scones?" England asked, extending a plate of deceptively delicious charcoal to the small boy who was staring out of one of the many windows lining the walls of the large house.

Hong Kong simply shook his head, clutching the small panda plush doll he always kept with him—the last remaining object in his possession, aside from his clothes, that reminded him of China and his old home.

England sighed as he set the plate down by him on the sill. "I'll just leave these here in case you get hungry."

They were, of course, left alone to gather dust along with the other plates of food England left out for him (rotting was a near impossibility for food that had had the very life beaten out of it and made into something so ghastly).

Such scenes occurred every single day in England's household. Really, he tried to be nice, but he just was not getting through to him. '_America was so much more cute and accommodating. . ._' England would often lament every time he saw Hong Kong and his sullen yet nearly expressionless face.

Even the prospect of the upcoming holidays did not do anything to improve his mood. England thought that New Years would evoke at least a tiny smile from him what with how significant that holiday was to the Chinese.

And then it hit him—of course he would not get excited. The preparations England was making pertained only to his version of New Years, not Hong Kong's.

Thus, one day, England swallowed just enough of his pride to venture to Asia to gather any and all information he could about Hong Kong's version of New Years. Of course, he was not going to go to China right away. . . .

* * *

"New Years?" Japan asked after he had greeted the Briton into his home and they had settled down by a _kotatsu_ with some tea.

"Ah, yeah, New Years. How exactly do you celebrate it?" England asked as he folded up his coat and set it on the floor cushion beside him.

Japan ponderously sipped his tea while he thought of his traditions. "Ah," he exclaimed after a moment, "well, we usually visit the temple to watch the monks ring the temple bell 108 times."

England glanced up as he imagined a monk tag-teaming another to successfully continue banging away at a bell. "That's a bit much isn't it. . .?"

"We also send postcards to friends and family members, eat traditional foods like _ozoni_, awaken early to watch the first sunrise of the year, and give monetary gifts to children." Japan continued with a small nod.

"Huh. I guess children enjoy receiving gifts no matter what the holiday." England mused aloud as he made mental notes.

"Haha. Indeed, Igirisu-san. Although often parents tend to hold onto the money themselves while allowing their children to spend only an allotted amount of it. Sometimes the children never actually see the rest of their New Years money again for the rest of their lives." Japan said as he folded his arms and ducked his head down solemnly.

England gawked in response. "Th-that's kind of dirty, isn't it?"

Another chuckle escaped from Japan's lips and he nodded. "Hai, although it is a gift in itself for children to learn how to be frugal."

"I suppose. . . "

After spending more time chatting and sipping tea, England bid Japan farewell to head next to another one of China's neighbors, this one a little closer to him—Korea.

* * *

"Eh, New Years! In Korea, New Years is a grand occasion that's celebrated with games, great food, and staying up all night long, _da-ze_! Oh yeah, did you know New Years originated in Korea?" Korea exclaimed as soon as he threw the door open after England knocked on it _once._

"I didn't even ask-", but England was interrupted as Korea yanked him inside and sat him down in what could be considered the sitting room.

"It's a great time to be a kid too, because once you suck up to your old relatives they give you money gifts!" Korea shuffled around in a storage closet before yanking out a large dark sienna-colored mask with the face of a jovial man carved onto it. However, its thin slit-cut eyes and overly large features made it seem creepy despite its genial expression. He held it up to his face and whipped right back around. "And you get to scare away evil spirits with this! _Ch'oyong_ masks! Some people dance around with them on while others set bamboo sticks on fire! Betcha didn't know fire originated in Korea too, huh?"

"I think they'd run away after hearing you talk in all honesty." England muttered, rising from his seat to back away when Korea started to advance towards him with that mask still on while flailing his oversized sleeves in the air hyperly, whirling them like windmill blades in a typhoon.

"Hahaha! Wanna battle with kites? I'll win in two seconds, no doubt! Oh, by the way, kites were also-" but he was interrupted by the door slamming shut with a loud bang after England made a hasty retreat.

* * *

"Phew. . .I ran away so fast I lost track of where I am. . ." England huffed to himself after he had stopped to rest after running as far from Korea's house as he possibly could. "I guess I should ask someone-OMPH!" His body jolted forward as someone barreled right into him.

"Aiyaa! Sorry about that, but watch where you're going too-aru!" Came a voice from behind him. A large pile of books with a giant panda plush teetering on top of it blocked the person from view, but England stared with a suspicious frown.

"_Aru_? It couldn't be. . ." England pulled aside the panda plush and dropped it when his suspicions were confirmed. "China!"

"AH. It's England!" China's face instantly scrunched up into a disgruntled pout, "What are _you_ doing here-aru? Can't you see I'm busy? I don't have time to make you more food-aru. And give back that panda; I need it-aru!"

"Hmph." England yanked it up from the ground, but held onto it. As long as he was here he might as well ask about how the Chinese celebrated New Years directly from the source of the holiday. Plus with the panda hostage, China would have no choice but to invite him to his house. "You look like you need some help. I'll carry this, but for my sake not yours." He said, walking off towards China's home.

"I really don't need it-aru." China grumbled, but followed along without too much complaint since his hands were too full for him to snatch back the panda and because England was already half a block ahead of him.

Once inside, China dropped the large pile of texts onto a table with a sigh. "_Xiè xie_, I guess." A full two seconds passed before he waved with a wide, yet tense smile, "Well. _Zài jiàn_! Please hesitate to come back-aru!"

"Wait just a bloody minute!" England flipped the panda upside down onto a chair before taking a seat too, making himself comfortable by crossing his legs and leaning back. "The least you could do after I came all this way is to offer me some tea!"

A small twitch irritated China's lower left eyelid, but he continued to smile. "Ahahaha. . .of course. How could I forget-aru?" He turned and started grumbling under his breath as he went to the kitchen to prepare a pot of (his cheapest) tea.

England drummed his fingers against the table while he waited, boredly surveying the house. The large pile of books that was resting in front of him mildly caught his interest and he casually picked up a few to browse through them. They were books on the subjects of math and science as well as capitalism and democracy. In one of them was a note from a Kang Youwei that said: '_Study these and you'll become a hundred times stronger! Yeah! Let's do it! Knowledge is power!_' "Bloody hell, what is thi-".

"Your tea!" England jumped when China slammed down the tray, making some ceramic cups teeter and spin precariously until they settled back on their bases. He yoinked the book back and moved the entire pile to another table that was further from the Briton. He then returned to fill a cup and push it towards England with a forced laugh, "Enjoy."

England raised a bushy brow at his sudden uneasiness, but took the offered cup and sipped from it. "It hardly compares to Earl Grey, but at least it's easier to swallow than that disgusting swill America enjoys so much." He critiqued with a smug smirk.

"Now why did you come here-aru? Just to visit-aru?" China asked, hoping he would hurry up and leave already so he could get back to his work.

"Aa-aah, right." England cleared his throat and glanced aside as he spoke, "Well, New Years is coming up for me and I was mildly curious about how you celebrated yours. Not because I intend to put anything you say into practice or anything, mind you. It's only so I can accurately judge how much better my celebration traditions are to yours."

"_Lǎo_-" China cut himself off when he stopped to consider what England's real reason might be for his request. It was unlike him to travel all this way simply to gloat, or, somewhat unlike him at least. He had an ulterior motive, but what was it?

It was then that an image of Hong Kong cuddling his panda plush came to mind and China's old heart melted. Of course! How could he ever forget that dear little boy! He must be so sad to be away from home, away from all he knew and loved.

"Hmm? What was that?" England asked with his eyes flitting back to cast his full attention on the other man.

"Ahh, I was just saying: of course I'll tell you all I know-aru." China poured himself a cup of tea before he continued, "New Years is a really big deal for us-aru. Our celebrations last for fifteen days and we do something different each day. Basically, we eat good food, visit friends and relatives, decorate our houses with red ornaments, give money to little kids, watch lion dances and play fireworks!"

"Again with the money. . . don't you ever give your kids toys or something?"

China sipped from his cup and shrugged, "I guess toys are fine, but look at it this way. By giving them money, you don't have to do their shopping for them and they can spend it however they want. It's a definite win-win-aru. Very efficient."

"I guess. So, where can one go about finding all these things? Not like I'm interested of course." England asked, setting down his now empty cup.

China suppressed a chuckle from behind his sleeve before he too placed his cup down. "If you'd like, I could send you some materials and food in time for my New Years-aru."

"Huh? Really?" England started to smile since that would save him a lot of trouble, but then remembered that he was only doing this to mock China's way of celebrating and thus should not get too excited. Right. He needed to remember that very important fact. Mocking was the main point here. He cleared his throat again and reached up to re-straighten his tie. "I mean, whatever suits you."

Another chuckle had to be suppressed. "_Hǎo_! Will that be all then-aru?"

"Ah, yeah, I should be going now." England poured and drained another cup of tea for the road before he left.

"Aiyaa~! I know this won't be much, but I hope it'll make Hong Kong a little happier-aru. . ." China said aloud to no one in particular with a smile before he, with strong resolve, went off to gather what he could to make Hong Kong's New Years just a little bit more special.

* * *

A few weeks later some packages arrived at England's doorstop, all with a panda stamp on them.

"Oi~! Hong Kong! I've got a surprise for you!" England called out from the living room when he brought them all in. They were rather large and he had to take multiple trips just to lug them inside, but hopefully their sizes would add to the boy's impending joyful outburst.

Hong Kong shuffled in and paused when he saw them.

England had a knife out now to cut at the ties and paper that were binding the packages. When the tops were opened, he stood back and motioned towards them with his hand. "See for yourself."

A moment of hesitation passed before Hong Kong stepped forward and knelt by the box closest to him with his panda stuffed into his sash so both his arms were free to dig inside of it.

With a grin, England watched with his arms crossed and his eyes closing. Finally he would get to see more life from the boy! Finally he would have a colony that jumped for joy and ran about excitedly like all good little colonies should.

A faint shuffling and then the sound of quiet footsteps exiting the room alerted him. He reopened his eyes and glanced around, looking alarmed when he saw Hong Kong balancing all the packages on top of his shoulders and head as he made his way back upstairs to his little bedroom.

"H-hey, be careful now!" England exclaimed as he followed after him frantically with his arms outstretched so he would be ready to catch one of the heavy boxes if one fell. However, Hong Kong managed to reach his room and set them all down on the floor. Before England could reprimand him for doing something so dangerous—and for that show of strength—the door was quietly closed, effectively shutting him out.

England stared after the closed door. He turned and pressed his ear to the polished wood to listen in. Aside from a few soft rustles, he heard nothing. Disappointed that his plan had failed, he went off with a sigh. Because of Hong Kong's less than satisfactory reaction, England decided to leave him alone for the rest of the day, and thus proceeded to dine and then retire to bed without bothering him.

"I really thought that would work. . ." England grumbled as he tugged the comforter up past his nose to hide his pout.

Sparkles signaled the arrival of his faeries as well as his other mythological friends. "You really tried your best, it's not your fa~ult." A pink faerie assured him as she hovered by his cheek.

"That's right, that's right!" the others agreed as the unicorn nuzzled its nose against his shoulder while Flying Mint Bunny snuggled the top of his head.

"Ahaha. . thanks guys. You always know how to make me feel better." England said with a smile before he closed his eyes, falling fast sleep. His friends all giggled and nodded to each other before settling around him to sleep too.

Around the edge of his bedroom's doorframe, a pair of dark brown eyes peeked inside.

* * *

The next morning England was slowly wakened by a loud hissing sound. "Mmph?" he opened his eyes and saw orange and yellow sparkles up above him. Deeming them as belonging to his faeries, he thought nothing of it and fell back asleep. That is until it registered in his mind that his faeries' sparkles should not hurt. He quickly sat up, his face colliding with something dangling from his bedpost. "Bloody hell, what is that?"

He turned around and his eyes went white and wide when he figured out what it was. The hissing came from a _lit fuse_ that was attached to a long string of red firecrackers!

"DEAR SWEET QUEEN VICTORIA-" was all he could manage to say before they exploded in a sea of rapid pops and crackles. Pirate-instincts taking over, he leapt off from the bed to roll and take cover underneath it while the string danced and showered down red paper in the air. After a few seconds, the popping ceased and the heavy scent of gunpowder dissipated around his room. England crawled out from under the bed to look up at the mess with a sigh. However, rather than just some scattered and singed red paper, what met him was a creature of monstrous and colorful proportions! "GAAH!" England fell backwards as he stared up at it frightfully. "S-stay back! I'll curse you!"

The creature blinked its eyes before it raised its head and separated at the neck. What hopped out from it was something sparkly, red, and gold. Upon closer inspection, England saw that it was Hong Kong, although he was dressed in a brand new outfit that looked far happier and festive than his expression could ever convey.

Hong Kong stepped forward and crouched in front of him. A few tense seconds passed in silence before the small boy reached forward to wrap his arms around England's shoulders. "Thank you."

"Huh?" For a moment, England felt like he was still dreaming. Hong Kong was actually hugging him? And he _spoke?_ Had he once ever actually heard his voice before? A quick recollection pointed out that no, he had not.

"Thank you." Hong Kong repeated softly as he pulled back to reach into his pants pocket to retrieve something in his tiny fist. He took England's hand and turned his palm face-up so he could set his fist in it to deposit what looked like a few pieces of candy. With that done, he turned, picked up the creature-head (which was actually supposed to be a highly-decorated lion) and ran off.

". . ." England could not help the smile that spread across his face. He even felt a small tear welling in the corner of his eye and he reached up to brush it away before it could fall. Hong Kong had actually initiated an interaction with him, had actually hugged him! He really was cute after all, just like he knew a colony of his would be. Perhaps this one would be more obedient and compliant than America had been. Perhaps this one would bond with him and never cause him any trouble like America had!

In his happiness he did not notice that the candy in his hand started to hiss too, and when he looked down at them it was too late.

_KABOOSH!_

". . HONG KONG!"

For the first time since his transfer, Hong Kong's lips twitched up in a smile and somewhere far off, China felt the urge to do the same.

* * *

**Happy New Years everybody~! Hope you enjoyed this little fic!**

[**Japanese notes**]

_Kotatsu_- A low wooden table covered by a futon that usually has a heating pad on the underside so it's very warm and ideal for cold weather.

Ringing bell 108 times- This is supposed to release people from the 108 worldly sins according to Buddhism.

_Ozoni_- A Japanese soup with mochi that is eaten on New Years.

First sunrise- It is thought to be good and prosperous to see the first sunrise of the new year.

Parents keeping money- Might not occur with everyone, but it sure happened to someone I knew. True story.

[**Korean notes**]

Staying up all night long- It is believed that if one slept on the night of New Years Eve, their eyebrows would turn white. People should also welcome the New Years with bright open eyes.

Burning bamboo- The sound is believed to scare away demons.

Battling with kites- During New Years, boys engage in kite battles where they try to cut each other's kites with their own kite strings which are laced with glass shards.

[**Chinese notes**]

_Xiè xie_- thank you

_Zài jiàn_- goodbye

_Hǎo_- good

Kang Youwei- He was a participant of the Hundred Days' Reform which was a 104-day national cultural, political and educational reform movement that existed during 1898. It attempted to modernize China, but failed.

Red and gold outfit- It is traditional for the Chinese to wear new clothes on New Years Day. The color red represents happiness and gold represents wealth and happiness.

Creature-head- It is actually a lion costume used for lion dances that troupes from martial art schools usually perform during Chinese New Year. The dance is thought to bring good luck and fortune, especially to businesses.

Monetary gifts- Officially called _lai see_, they are given to children, people who are unmarried, and close relatives in small red envelopes to symbolize good fortune.

Smile- It is good for children to not cry on New Years since it could mean that their whole year would be filled with crying.


End file.
